What a strange few weeks it has been! Easter came and we had sunshine and a chilly wind, but everyone seemed to be out and about, and the following week, things really opened up with the easing of restrictions on 12th April.
On that day, I was lucky enough to get my hair cut! It does make such a difference to how you feel about yourself, doesn’t it, when you can look in the mirror and it looks like you!
I think so many of us have felt unlike ourselves in the last year or so. The familiar routines, the normal expectations of how we live our lives, have been so totally disrupted, and although many of us are ready to pick up the threads and want to go back to how things were, the continuation of some restrictions makes that impossible. However much we are pleased to have more freedom, quite a few people are feeling anxious and worried about getting back into busy high streets, mixing with more people, and some friends have commented on how busy the roads suddenly seem, and also how some people appear to have forgotten how to drive!
We have to take this slowly, I believe. We need to ease ourselves back to a new level with kindness and care, not just for ourselves, but for those around us. There are many who have had good reasons to shield, to protect themselves or family members, and they must be feeling vulnerable at present. We cannot see the internal dialogue some people are having, and we need to be aware that not everyone we meet is feeling confident, and to treat them gently.
That is important for ourselves, too. Returning to the workplace, mixing with family in outdoor eating spaces (which I did last weekend!), going shopping can all feel quite daunting when we have been unable to do these ordinary things for so long. Eating out on Saturday, I felt certain that the pub garden was as safe as it could be, and we were able to relax and enjoy ourselves once we were seated, but I was quite nervous as we arrived and walked to our table, despite being in the fresh air.
I am even taking a short break – 4 nights away on my own with my dog. I am renting a self-catering cottage not all that far away, but looking forward to a break in routine, and some time to just read and relax after a long year when I have been fortunate to stay very busy with hArt business, but it has been quite tiring!
Being somewhere different, and having several days away from what has become quite a set pattern of work and household chores, will be such a luxury. Perhaps, before the pandemic, I would not have appreciated such an opportunity as much.
Finally, I came across these lovely bluebells on a walk this week, and wanted to share them.
Have a great bank holiday weekend,
Annie